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McLAREN GT “YOUNG DRIVER” WYLIE BEGINS MAIDEN GT3 CAMPAIGN

Ross Wylie begins his quest for honours in the 2015 British GT Championship at Oulton Park in Cheshire on Easter Monday (6 Apr). The 23-year-old from Thornhill near Dumfries races a McLaren 650S GT3 sportscar with Andrew Watson (N. Ireland) in two, one-hour races at the Cheshire track.

Wylie, who won the GT4 class in the prestigious British series at his first attempt last year, is an official McLaren GT “Young Driver” and lines-up for Von Ryan Racing around the picturesque 2.692-mile Oulton track. British Racing Drivers’ Club “SuperStar” Wylie has previously enjoyed good fortune at Oulton Park. In 2013, he scored his maiden Volkswagen Racing Cup victory – only his second VRC race – and last year qualified in pole-position and won – his first GT4 race at Oulton.

It will be the first time Wylie and co-driver Watson have raced a GT3 sportscar while Oulton marks the first races for the McLaren 650S GT3 in the UK. A quality field of 34-cars is expected to contest the two races which signals the start of the nine race, seven event BGT season which culminates at Donington Park in September.

“Andrew and I are open minded going into this season in terms of what results we can achieve in our first season of GT3 racing but we’ll be pushing 100% every time we sit in the McLaren. We have prepared ourselves in the best way possible thanks to the fantastic support of McLaren GT so hopefully we can repay their faith in us.

“The McLaren 650S GT3 is awesome to drive and gives the driver a lot of satisfaction but it’s still difficult to determine where we stack up against the opposition and that won’t be until we all get out on track in qualifying and then the race at Oulton Park.

“Andrew and I have both been graded ‘silver’ level drivers by the organisers meaning we incur a weight penalty making it an even bigger challenge. Pre-season testing at Oulton, Silverstone, Rockingham and Snetterton has gone really well. We’ve covered a good amount of mileage while Andrew and I, plus the Von Ryan Racing team, have all gelled well together.

“Oulton Park is a great ‘driver’ circuit, arguably a bit too tight for these GT3 cars in terms of the narrowness of the track at times but certainly a great ‘old school’ venue with very little margin for error. I really can’t wait for the season to begin!”